Senior official says Netanyahu holding up hostage-truce deal with new demands

A senior Israeli official involved in the negotiations for a hostage-ceasefire deal with Hamas says that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is holding up an agreement with new demands.

Speaking to Hebrew media, the official says that the prime minister is now insisting on the establishment of an enforcement mechanism that would prevent armed Hamas operatives from returning to northern Gaza.

“This is the moment of truth for the hostages,” the official tells Channel 12. We can reach an agreement within two weeks and bring the hostages home.”

“The prime minister’s insistence on building a mechanism to prevent the movement of armed operatives will stall the talks for weeks and then there may not be anyone to bring home,” the official says.

According to the Walla news site, Netanyahu raised the issue in a meeting with the negotiating team in a meeting Thursday night. The team told Netanyahu that they were opposed to the new condition and it was not feasible. Netanyahu told the team he insists on it.

“It is a demand that was not part of the Israeli proposal from May 27. It’s not clear why Netanyahu is raising this demand now. The security services know how to deal with the return of the armed terrorists to northern Gaza,” the official says.

Channel 12 quotes officials as saying that they believe Netanyahu is trying to delay a deal because he is likely to lose his coalition over the deal, with far-right parties vowing to quit if the agreement goes through.